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POLICE are hunting for a man who tried to abduct a woman in Worcester.

The man grabbed the woman as she was taking a shortcut through the car park at Asda in Lowesmoor on Sunday morning on her way to work.

The woman walked past a man sitting on a metal bicycle bar at around 7.15am before he got up and followed her for a short distance.

He grabbed her from behind, put his hand across her mouth and pushed her into some nearby bike racks and up against a concrete wall.

The woman struggled and, in a matter of seconds, he released her running off into St Martin’s Quarter.

Detectives have released CCTV footage of a man they want to speak to about the attempted abduction.

The man caught on CCTV at around the time of the assault was described as having dark hair, wearing a baseball cap and a dark jacket which was either a gilet or similar.

He was also wearing lighter long sleeved clothing underneath, jeans or trousers and white trainers.

Detective Inspector Andy Price of Worcester CID said: “We do not know what the man’s motives were for assaulting the woman and we are thankful he has stopped it after just a few seconds.

“However, we are concerned this man could pose a serious risk to the public and we need to find him as soon as possible.

"As such we are releasing footage of a man caught on CCTV at the time of the incident.

“We need to speak to him at the earliest opportunity because we believe he could play a central role in our investigation.

"If anyone knows who he is, then please contact us straightaway.

"I would also like to appeal to the man directly to contact us himself.”

DI Price can be contacted via the non-emergency police number 101 or information can be passed on anonymously through the independent charity Crimestoppers by calling 0800 555 111 or visiting crimestoppers-uk.org and quoting the reference number 169s 23/02/14.

Comments (1)

"As a direct result of the media appeal a man handed himself in to police and has been arrested in connection with an attempted abduction in Worcester on Sunday 23 February. He is currently in custody."

West Mercia Police have posted this update on Facebook:
"As a direct result of the media appeal a man handed himself in to police and has been arrested in connection with an attempted abduction in Worcester on Sunday 23 February. He is currently in custody."Andy_R